1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to automatic musical performance apparatuses for recording musical performance data onto a recording medium and replaying the musical performance data therefrom, and more particularly, to an automatic musical performance apparatus having two groups of tracks, a first group for recording musical pattern data such as keycode, key-velocity and duration, and a second group for recording level data for each track of the first group.
2. Prior Art
Heretofore, automatic musical performance apparatuses which allow the user to record their performances and replay them are widely known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,955,459 discloses an automatic performance system in an electronic musical instrument in which all of the performance information on tone pitches, tempos, colors, volumes, vibrato effect and the like which are obtained from movable members such as a keyboard, tone levers, an expression pedal, and a vibrato switch operated by a performer during a performance, can be automatically reproduced with high fidelity and modified as desired.
The apparatus, however, has some problems to be solved, as follows:
(a) When recording musical tones, it is difficult for a performer to know the differences in tone volume among tracks. It is far easier for a performer to adjust the tone volume of each track by replaying the performance and listening thereto The conventional apparatus, however, is not provided with a function for controlling the volume of each track after recording by listening to the replay of the performance.
(b) Tone volume varies in a different manner whether it is controlled in accordance with volume information or key-velocity information: whereas the volume information simply varies tone volumes, the key-velocity information presents small tone color changes as well as tone volume variation The conventional apparatus is not provided with a means for selecting either key-sensitive volume control or simple volume control, and hence does not allow satisfactory volume control.
(c) Suppose that a second group of tracks is provided for controlling volume of each track in a first group of tracks that contain pattern data. If all volume data of each track in the second group must be set, the setting work will be tedious and time consuming.
(d) A modern musical piece often includes parts whose time or rhythm style are different from one another (polyrhythm), and also includes repetition patterns of different loop lengths. The conventional apparatus, however, is not capable of handling these different rhythms and loop lengths.
(e) Conventional apparatuses have a Next function that changes a song number or tone color sequentially. But the conventional Next function cannot change a set of data such as a combination of tone colors of tracks, a combination of a song and tone color thereof, etc.